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“Most of my friends flew the coop when I lost Alex and the kids. They got sick of my whining, apparently. Then the few who stuck around blamed me for the photo fiasco.”
“None of them were real friends, then. Even a jerk like me knows that. Do you have family nearby?”
“Nope, everyone’s back East. So beware, young man, I’m as needy as they come. You think your mother is clinging, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
“I’m not afraid of that,” he said, chuckling. “But as far as my mother goes, it might be time for me to move out of her house. It’s not a good idea to depend on her as much as I do.”
“What would you do at night?”
“I might have to consider leaving the fire service and getting a nine-to-five.”
“I can keep her at night, Leon. That was never a problem for me.”
They left the highway for the back roads. “This looks like a different country,” he said, changing the subject.
“It reminds me of the sierras with the pine trees and the high elevation. I love these quaint shops.”
Up ahead a sign that said U-Pick Apples got their attention. “Can you pull in there? We don’t have to pick our own. And I want to get cider and donuts.”
“My mom wants an apple crumb pie,” he said. “I’ll get one for her and one for me.”
“Their pies are deadly,” she said. “It’s smart to get more than one, that’s for sure.”
As soon as the car stopped, Violet started to fuss. “Bottle time,” Leon said, looking at his phone. “The last time she ate was about three hours ago.”
They worked together, getting her out of the seat and unloading the car. Leon got a bottle out of the cooler and looked at it. “I don’t have any way to heat this up. Kiddo, if you’re hungry enough, you’ll drink.”
“Is it icy? I can take it inside the bathroom and run it under hot water if you think it’s too cold.”
“Okay, if you don’t mind. Next time I’ll bring hot water in a thermos.”
Walking to the bathroom, Ava smiled. So there would be a next time. She would take it slow because she had all the time in the world, and as long as Leon had a baby, she’d be useful. While she stood at the sink, running hot water over the bottle, she suddenly saw how pathetic it was that she was basically at the mercy of a twenty-three-year-old guy and his kid for getting a life.
The reflection staring back at her had a touch of pity. “You’re a mess,” she mumbled. “Pull it together.”
She pulled paper toweling out of the dispenser to dry the bottle off before she left the bathroom. Looking like a model in a photo shoot, Leon leaned against the car with the baby in his arms, looking at his phone. Maybe this wasn’t such a great idea. He was really young for a twenty-three-year-old, too. She’d get the apples and get out so they could be back home in time for the game, wishing she’d never asked him to get together.
“This should be warm enough,” she said, handing him the bottle. “I’ll run into the shop and get my apples and your mother’s pie if you want to feed her. Then we can head back for the game.”
“Perfect,” he replied, taking the bottle. “We can pick up lunch on the way home, as planned.”
So it wasn’t off base, her decision to keep it simple; it was what they had planned all along. A wave of depression washed over her. What had she expected? That he’d say to hell with the game, let’s spend the day in this quaint town, maybe even get a room for the night?Come on, loser,she thought, standing in line with her paper sacks of apples. It was time to get a life if spending time with her charge’s father had become so important. Maybe after Leon left, she’d renew her dating site profile. She’d closed it down after the photo lawsuit fiasco. It was still online if searched for long enough.
Watching her walk toward him with the purchases roused a completely different set of intentions in Leon. The attraction for her definitely grew as the minutes with her passed. The age difference wasn’t an issue for him at all. He took a step toward her.
“Give me something,” he said, laughing at the pile of pie boxes and bags of apples she was juggling.
“I’m perfectly balanced.”
“Jeez, I can smell that pie. I might have to eat it on the way home.”
“I bought you a snack-sized pie,” she said, giggling. “You don’t even need a fork to eat it.”
They spent the next ten minutes getting Violet changed and strapped in her car seat. Keeping the pies safe from flying around the back of the car was next.
“Wedge them under the seat,” Ava said.
They left Julian with enough time to get back to town, drop Roberta’s pie off, pick up lunch, and be in front of the TV when the game started. The outing had returned to its original purpose, and by the time they pulled into her driveway, Ava was okay again.
